Almost 20 million euros are planned to be attracted from external sources for the implementation of the three-year National Program for the Development of Public Procurement.
The Ministry of Finance is holding public consultations on the draft of this program for 2024-2026 and an action plan for its implementation. The main goal of the program is the development of a highly efficient public procurement system capable of providing “value for money” when using public funds. In particular, it is planned to bring Moldova's public procurement system in line with EU standards and reengineer the electronic public procurement system, increasing its use to 80% of the total volume of public procurement. It is planned to create an integrated procurement system to achieve the goals set in state policy documents, with an emphasis on social, environmental, innovation and efficiency aspects. A unified public procurement policy will be promoted, events are planned to improve the professionalism and potential of specialists in the field of public procurement. The total cost of the measures provided for in the National Program for the Development of the Public Procurement System has yet to be assessed. Part of the costs will be covered from the budget funds that will be planned when approving the budgets in 2024-2026. From external sources, according to preliminary estimates, it will be necessary to attract 19.9 million euros. According to the Public Procurement Agency, in 2022 the total amount of public procurement amounted to 13.68 billion lei (5% of GDP), which is 1.6 times more than in 2021 (8.45 billion lei, or 3.5% of GDP). At the same time, in general, over the past 10 years, a direct relationship has been maintained between the rates of economic growth and the volume of government purchases. The explanatory note to the draft notes that the status of a candidate for EU membership also provides for a number of Moldova's obligations to bring the public procurement system in line with European standards. Thus, it is necessary to complete the reform in the field of public finance management, including through the improvement of public procurement at all government levels and the development of an electronic public procurement system. By 2026, the principles of integrity, sustainability, digitalization, transparency, low bureaucracy, etc. should work steadily in the public procurement system. Consultations on the project are held until July 27: https://goo.su/Hmg1oUd. //25.07.2023 – InfoMarket.
